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Speedrunning:Categories
This page contains descriptions of the different categories of the first two games. Categories The main categories for MediEvil and MediEvil II can be divided into console and emulator '''runs, then '''glitched runs and glitchless runs. Within glitched and glitchess two categories exist Any%, 100% and Max%. These categories are defined by the number of chalices (which in turn determine the ending received) and items collected (weapons, life bottles). Glitched runs are what the title suggests; speed-runs with glitches. With regards to MediEvil this means usage of the inventory glitch, level looping or abuse of the game, e.g. clipping, climbing out of bounds. Glitchless runs are then staying within the confines of the game and playing the game as "intended". This definition can be a bit misleading and confusing, as there are various skips used in glitchless runs. For example, in Scarecrow Fields, in a casual playthrough, to reach the chalice, you would have to fetch the harvester part and let the harvester cut a path though the corn to the chalice and the life bottle. However, a strategy used in both Glitchless and Glitched runs involves using the Daring Dash ability to jump over the corn and reach the chalice that way. In that respect, it is avoiding what was the intended method of reaching the chalice by using the harvester part. However, this skip does not abuse any game mechanics, nor is it a glitch. It is simply a clever usage of Fortesque's existing abilities. It's also useful to note that there is A LOT of overlap between the categories (you will see this on the level pages). Some levels do not have glitches in them so the routes are identical between the two categories i.e. Any% and Any% Glitchless, 100% and 100% Glitchless and Max% and Max% Glitchless. In some cases there is only one route for all the categories - Dan's Crypt, Zarok's Lair etc. Any% The Any% category involves beating the game in the quickest time possible with the usage of glitches and skips. To simplify into a few bullet points, this is what this run involves: *No Chalices are collected - Therefore the bad ending is received. *Life Bottles are collected as required (Usually Maximum of 5). *Only four weapons used in the run: Short Sword, Club, Throwing Daggers and Dragon Armour. *The Inventory Glitch is allowed (required for run). *Level Looping is allowed (required for run). *Clipping in general is allowed. Why is the Inventory Glitch and Level Looping Required? This is because: *First and foremost, it is quicker to skip through the levels than to complete them as usual. *Secondly, if you do not use these glitches the run will become extremely difficult, if not impossible. Level Looping is used to skip three levels: *The Enchanted Earth *The Ghost Ship *The Time Device Level Looping is required for The Enchanted Earth as it is completed early in the run to allow access to some of the harder levels early on, which allows you to get an early life bottle and to skip an item which is normally required to access the level's boss (which is obviously skipped). There are a number of reasons why this loop is important. If you don't get the life bottle in the level, then the other levels will become extremely difficult (health management is difficult enough with this bottle). Also you'd be required to do the boss of the level, which would also be extremely difficult if not impossible with throwing daggers and your arm! The Ghost Ship loop is required as you need to kill the enemies in the level to be able to advance through the level. With the weapons you have, you cannot kill these enemies and they deal a ridiculous amount of damage. You will get a Game Over before you complete the level. Also, if you do make it through the 'level' and get to the boss fight, then the minions will probably kill you as you try to attack the Captain. Similar to The Ghost Ship, in the Time Device the enemies can deal a lot of damage and will probably kill you before you get to the end of the level. Any% Glitchless The Any% Glitchless category involves beating the game in the quickest time possible without the usage of glitches and skips. To simplify into a few bullet points, this is what this run involves: *Three Chalices are collected - Therefore the bad ending is received. *Life Bottles are collected as required (Usually Maximum of 6). *Only six weapons used in the run: Short Sword, Club, Hammer, Throwing Daggers, Crossbow and Dragon Armour. *No Glitches are allowed. *Some skips are allowed. Why are Chalices collected in Any% Glitchless? Good question. If you've read the Any% category above, you will notice that Level Looping is required. It is required because the levels are too difficult to play as normal with the lack of weapons to kill the enemies. As glitches are banned in Any% Glitchless this would make the category impossible (as enemies need to die for progress to be made in the Level Loop levels). Therefore three chalices are collected which allow you to receive the Crossbow, a Life Bottle and the Hammer. The crossbow makes the Demonette boss fight easier in The Enchanted Earth. The Hammer is useful for generally killing enemies which are needed to allow certain doors to open, e.g. in The Ghost Ship. 100% and 100% Glitchless The 100% and 100% Glitchless category involves beating the game with all Chalices collected with and without the usage of glitches and skips (respectively). To simplify into a few bullet points, this is what this run involves: *All Chalices are collected - Therefore the good ending is received. *Life Bottles are collected as required (Usually Maximum of). *All weapons are available for use in the run. *(No) Glitches are allowed (Depending on Category). Max% and Max% Glitchless The Max% and Max% Glitchless category involves beating the game with all Chalices, Life Bottles and Weapons collected with and without the usage of glitches and skips (respectively). To simplify into a few bullet points, this is what this run involves: *All Chalices are collected - Therefore the good ending is received. *All Life Bottles are collected. *All Weapons are collected. *(No) Glitches are allowed (Depending on Category) Console vs Emulator There was a conscious decision made within the MediEvil speedrunning community to separate the leaderboards into console runs and emulator runs. There were a number of reasons for this: #There are timing differences between emulator and console which makes them unsuitable to be compared on the same leaderboard. For example, a PlayStation 2 Slim running MediEvil with Fast Disc Speed will run the game faster than any emulator. This is a console advantage. However, emulators have generally less lag due to increased processing power of computers, and therefore less slowdown, which gives emulators an advantage. Overall, a console runs the game slower than an emulator. #An emulator does not necessarily emulate the games well. There are audio bugs in MediEvil. MediEvil II does not work on most emulators and freezes on Whitechapel. There are also other freezes and bugs which are only present in an emulator. There is a trick in MediEvil involving the despawn of soldiers and Lord Kardok in Zarok's Lair. This trick is only possible on an emulator. Attempts of this trick on console will cause the game to crash. This trick allows a time save of a couple of minutes on emulator over console, meaning emulator will always be faster than console. There's more competition on emulator, so by separating the leaderboards, this trick can be allowed in emulator runs. What does this mean for running MediEvil? As the times are tracked differently, it is totally personal preference as to what you use. A brief summary: *A console is more expensive as it requires capture equipment, a television and a console (NTSC-U). This is regarded as the more legitimate way to run the game as you are playing the game as intended. There are no unfair advantages when people use different emulators. *An emulator is easier to set up and is more competitive. It has extra tricks and is the fastest way to run the game. ''MediEvil'' routes Any% There are a number of different routes for Any%. The quickest route is as follows: #Dan's Crypt #The Graveyard #Cemetery Hill #The Hilltop Mausoleum #Return to the Graveyard #Scarecrow Fields #Pumpkin Gorge #The Pumpkin Serpent #The Sleeping Village #The Asylum Grounds #Inside the Asylum #The Enchanted Earth #Pools of the Ancient Dead #The Lake #The Crystal Caves #The Gallows Gauntlet #The Haunted Ruins #The Ghost Ship #The Entrance Hall #The Time Device #Zarok's Lair The older route below is recommended for beginners, as The Enchanted Earth can be skipped via a level loop glitch, which allows access to two harder stages, those being Pools of the Ancient Dead and The Lake, which are best to get out of the way at the beginning of the run, due to their difficulty and because they yield an easy-to-get life bottle which is useful for Inside the Asylum. You must then continue the level order as normal, as the Dragon Gems are needed to get through The Crystal Caves. #Dan's Crypt #The Graveyard #Cemetery Hill #The Hilltop Mausoleum #Return to the Graveyard #Dan's Crypt (For Life Bottle - Can be skipped) #The Enchanted Earth #Pools of the Ancient Dead #The Lake #Scarecrow Fields #Pumpkin Gorge #The Pumpkin Serpent #The Sleeping Village #The Asylum Grounds #Inside the Asylum #The Crystal Caves #The Gallows Gauntlet #The Haunted Ruins #The Ghost Ship #The Entrance Hall #The Time Device #Zarok's Lair Any% Glitchless Any% Glitchless is a variation on the 100% categories. The only difference in the route being that 'The Ant Caves' is skipped because it is not required for the run. #Dan's Crypt #The Graveyard (Chalice collected - Crossbow.) #Cemetery Hill (Chalice collected - Life Bottle.) #The Hilltop Mausoleum #Return to the Graveyard #Dan's Crypt (For Life Bottle - Can be skipped.) #Scarecrow Fields #Pumpkin Gorge #The Pumpkin Serpent #The Sleeping Village #The Asylum Grounds #Inside the Asylum (Chalice collected - Hammer.) #The Enchanted Earth #Pools of the Ancient Dead #The Lake #The Crystal Caves #The Gallows Gauntlet #The Haunted Ruins #The Ghost Ship #The Entrance Hall #The Time Device #Zarok's Lair Both 100% and Max% Categories Both 100% and Max% categories include all the levels in the game. In Max%, Dan's Crypt must be revisited to get the life bottle in meeting the requirements for the category. #Dan's Crypt #The Graveyard #Cemetery Hill #The Hilltop Mausoleum #Return to the Graveyard #Dan's Crypt (Cannot be skipped in Max%) #The Ant Caves #Scarecrow Fields #Pumpkin Gorge #The Pumpkin Serpent #The Sleeping Village #The Asylum Grounds #Inside the Asylum #The Enchanted Earth #Pools of the Ancient Dead #The Lake #The Crystal Caves #The Gallows Gauntlet #The Haunted Ruins #The Ghost Ship #The Entrance Hall #The Time Device #Zarok's Lair Category:Speedrunning